Jaya Duttagupta is a teacher of Class 5 Social Studies and Class 6, 7 and 8 History. She has been with Dakshini Prayash for 17 years now and “loves her school”. In particular, her favourite part is “teaching” as it allows her to build meaningful connections with the students. She is also close to the teaching staff who she describes as “very, very nice” and her “family”.

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Jaya also immerses herself in the holistic Dakshini Prayash experience by helping run extracurricular activities, such as drama and recitation performances. These recitations are usually in Bengali, but occasionally, they happen in English, too. Although “all the days are memorable”, one thing Jaya reflects on is how the school supports her when she’s ill. “I feel very much supported,” Jaya says. “When I return to school, all the students give me something, and say that they missed me very much. That’s very special to me.” These gifts include personalised cards, demonstrating the strong bond present between Jaya and her students. “Dakshini Prayash is a very beautiful place. It’s a place of happiness.”

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